NFIB member Steve Parthree on the lack of a Like-Kind
Exchange law in Pennsylvania:
NFIB member Steve Parthree and his son Matt own One Way
Janitorial in York. The successful
family business which sells cleaning supplies was started 37 years ago. Steve says he wishes Pennsylvania had a
Like-Kind Exchange tax policy in place, like all other states and the federal
government have.
There was a time when Steve wanted to expand his business
but it was nearly impossible to stock more cleaning supplies when he only owned
a 4000 square foot building. He had to
consider the risk of investing in a new larger building and in thousands of
dollars of additional cleaning supplies.
He learned that the federal government allowed like-kind exchanges. That law allows a tax deferral if property is
exchanged for a property that will be used for a similar business purpose.
Knowing there was a tax benefit at least at the federal level
gave Steve the incentive to buy a 26,000 square foot building, almost 7 times
the size of his current space. The company has been humming along ever since!
Pennsylvania is the only state in the nation that does not
have a like-kind exchange law that mirrors the federal tax code. That puts Pennsylvania businesses at a
competitive advantage.
NFIB member Kris Ranker on Pennsylvania’s 179 expensing law
limitations
When Kris Ranker bought Schaeffer’s convenience store in
Ruff’s Dale, Pennsylvania, 4 years ago, she had so much equipment to buy. One of the big ticket items was a walk-in
cooler. Kris and her accountant took
advantage of the federal 179 expensing law to depreciate the cost of all the
equipment purchases over time.
Pennsylvania has a 179 expensing law too, but the limit of
what can be expensed is just $25,000.
NFIB is fighting for a bill in the state capitol that would raise that
amount to $100,000 and increase the phase-out period.
Now after working hard and succeeding, Kris is thinking of
expanding her current business. Doing
that, would require and additional investment in equipment that goes above the
cap in existing law. If Pennsylvania makes the change in its 179 expensing law
that would give her a lot more reason to take the leap. If she succeeds, it would mean she would hire
double the number of employees in an area of Pennsylvania where jobs are
scarce.
